Impossible to Relate

Book Report for Impossible by Nancy Werlin

Cover Story: Exemplary

BFF Charm: I'll Take Half of You

Swoonworthy Scale: .5

Talky Talk: Um No. Just No.

Bonus Factors: Curses, (step)Parents That Rock

Relationship Status: Bless Your Heart

Cover Story:

Now this is a cover I love. It is mysterious and somewhat simple. The colors mesh it is pleasing to the eye and stimulating to the brain. This is where the book wins, in my opinion. The rest... well you will have the read the rest of the review to see where that goes.

The Deal:

Lucy has nine months to break an ancient curse in order to save both herself and her unborn daughter.

Inspired by the ballad “Scarborough Fair,” this riveting novel combines suspense, fantasy, and romance for an intensely page-turning and masterfully original tale.

Lucy is seventeen when she discovers that the women of her family have been cursed through the generations, forced to attempt three seemingly impossible tasks or to fall into madness upon their child’s birth. But Lucy is the first girl who won’t be alone as she tackles the list. She has her fiercely protective foster parents and her childhood friend Zach beside her. Do they have love and strength enough to overcome an age-old evil? (from GoodReads)

BFF Charm:  I'll Take Half of You

Lucy can be my friend, but I don't see her being a good friend. I think a good friend who could just kick her for being naive and downright stupid might be in order. On the other hand, Zach can be my friend any day. He is the meaning of true loyalty and friendship, not to mention a fantastic significant-other! His determination to help Lucy solve her curse is admirable and almost unbelievable. But that's okay, because so is a lot of the book!

Swoonworthy Scale: .5

This book attempts to be swoonworthy at times with Zach. And although his intentions are there, pregnant teenagers are not helping the swoon-y moments. Not even a RAPED pregnant teenager. Who doesn't have any normal rape victim reactions... (more about that later). While Zach himself could definitely have been high on the swoonworthy scale, Lucy and her adventures make this book hard for any heat whatsoever (at least in my opinion).

Talky Talk: Um No. Just No.

Now I can address the inappropriateness of the entire book that made me ANGRY. Rape is dealt with lightly in this book. Lucy doesn't seem to really have much of a reaction to it that I would expect. Rape is almost rewarded with a marriage. She doesn't seem to struggle, besides with her torment of the Elfan Knight and the curse. UM HELLO? Severely disliked this. 

Bonus Factors:

Curses

Curses are pretty cool. I actually like that Scarborough Fair was used as the inspiration. It created a nice sense of Magical Realism (one of my favorite things!).

(step)Parents That Rock

Don't you love google images? Lucy's awesome stepparents Leo and Soledad rock in their awesome ways that they help Lucy and encourage her to make the right decisions (although she doesn't choose abortion.. which could have been the easy way out of the curse IMO)

Relationship Status: Bless Your Heart

It was a nice try, but the little parts I liked really don't make up for the lack of true emotion that should have been portrayed by Lucy. She pouts and pities herself briefly but never really has a true emotional breakdown, which I believe was definitely called for. Teen pregnancy that is dealt with in a manner I wouldn't (not necessarily abortion but just understanding the weight of the situation) is probably my least favorite thing to read about, making this book a chore at times.

Disclaimer: I have used the Book Report Style Grading from ForeverYoungAdult. I do not claim originality in my style of reviews. That being said, this is my own personal opinion of a book I was unsolicited to review. I received nothing for my review except the pleasure of reading.

More to Come!

On Deck:

This Girl is Different by JJ Johnson

In The Pit:

Brooklyn, Burning by Steve Brezenoff

Deviant by Adrian McKinty

Misfit by Jon Skovron